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PLANT (Jupiter's Dawn)
The People's Liberation Action Nation of Technology - or PLANT - is a state and major faction ie Juubi-K's upcoming fanfiction 'Gundam SEED: Jupiter's Dawn'. Territory PLANT is located in Lagrange Point 5, and has effective control over it. It consists of 120 PLANT colonies, organised into twelve 'Cities' of ten colonies, along with numerous resource asteroids, independent space stations, and separate PLANTs. Government PLANT may be thought of as a democratic confederation. Each individual PLANT elects its own PLANT Council, while all the PLANTs in a given city elect a City Council and a Supreme Council representative in separate elections. Each member of the Supreme Council, in addition to their council duties, is assigned to one of five specialized committees; Administrative, Diplomatic, Judicial, Legislative, and National Defence, each with its own Chairperson. Committees consist not only of Supreme Council members, but also representatives of relevant government departments. For example, the National Defence Committee is made up primarily of ZAFT Staff Officers, and its Chairperson is effectively the Commander-in-Chief of ZAFT. The first - and most notorious - holder of this position was Patrick Zala. The governing system of PLANT was designed to be simple, easy to follow, and representative of both individual opinions and the general consensus wherever possible. In practice, it left enormous power in the hands of the Supreme Council Chair, at least so long as the holder had the support of the rest of the council. Patrick Zala was able to govern as a military dictator, between his control of the council and the loyalty of ZAFT. Society PLANT society is made up almost entirely of Coordinators, and it reflects this reality in many ways. The education system is designed with the superior mental capabilities of Coordinators in mind; and as such is extremely difficult for any Natural children who find themselves within it. Medical care consists almost entirely of hospitals and clinics designed around serious medical conditions, with little or no provision for minor ailments; as Coordinator physiology can generally handle such complaints. The news media is also relatively sophisticated compared to much of the Earth Sphere, a reflection of the high levels of education and rarefied intellectual atmosphere the PLANTs enjoy, as well as a sense of intellectual superiority and a desire to maintain a well-informed electorate. It is worth noting that this did little to stop Patrick Zala’s admittedly legal rise to power, and almost all media outlets tended to toe the party line out of national loyalty or fear of arrest. Society is on the whole civilized and decorous, with citizens - especially the older generations - placing great importance on order, cleanliness, and good manners. The genders are on the whole more equal than on much of the Earth, with all gender identities enjoying complete equality under the law, and with no professions being formally restricted or favoured on the basis of gender. Lifestyles nevertheless vary according to personal preference; for example, Romina Amalfi became a housewife after marrying her husband and giving birth to her son Nicol, while Lenore Zala continued working as an agricultural engineer after marrying Patrick Zala and giving birth to their son Athrun. Though Coordinators are no more likely to be bigots or ideologues than Naturals, ill-feeling towards the Earth Alliance, and Naturals in general, remains widespread. The Bloody Valentine tragedy has not been forgotten, and is not likely to be any time soon. For all that, Patrick Zala’s own attempted genocide forced many Coordinators to question their own values and morals. As a rule, Radicalism tends to manifest as a desire to separate Coordinators from Naturals, rather than to harm or destroy them. The PLANTs situation has left its society with some unusual features, notably arranged marriage under the Regulated Marriage laws. This system was ostensibly brought in to help resolve the PLANTs birth rate crisis, which was found to be due to genetic disorders arising from poorly-regulated genetic engineering and the limited genetic diversity of the population. Under the laws, citizens were assigned a spouse on the basis of genetic compatibility, with a view to them producing healthy children. Under PLANT law no person could be forced to marry, but the state could refuse marriage to couples not complying with the laws. The system was largely ineffective, with rumours spreading that it was nothing more than a cover for the elite to arrange political alliances via marrying off their children; Athrun Zala and Lacus Clyne being an obvious example. Nevertheless, some embraced the laws as part of a distinct Coordinator culture, and as a means of distinguishing themselves from Naturals. Economics The PLANTs began as sites for space mining, mineral processing, manufacturing, and research and development. The current PLANT economy reflects this, with extensive infrastructure supporting these sectors; both inside the PLANTs themselves, and in specialized external stations. The 'softer' sectors - such as the arts, entertainment, and academia - developed relatively slowly and without much official support. The sponsors wanted the PLANTs for raw materials and advanced technology, not art or philosophy. Nevertheless, the sponsors had relatively little direct control over the activities of the PLANTs; and even less after C.E.53 when OMNI withdrew its garrisons. The Coordinators were able to improve the PLANTs with technologies of their own devising, and would secretly exceed production quotas and keep the excess for themselves. The sponsor governments were unable to develop a consistent policy towards this; with some trying to suppress this self-improvement while others sought to profit from it by increasing quotas and taxes. Coordinators resented having more and more of their wealth extracted, but responded by continuing the same process; leading to a game of cat-and-mouse over the years. After C.E.53, the PLANTs were able to develop an economy independently. They were nevertheless contractually required to import consumer goods from Earth and the colonies, fulfill the same quotas as before, and to not engage in large-scale food production. Nevertheless, as time went on and the ability of OMNI to police the PLANTs waned, PLANT increasing bent and outright broke these restrictions. Its manufacturing capabilities had become so advanced that it could easily replace any manufactures imported from Earth, while ZAFT's growing capabilities made military intervention less of a concern. The only problem that remained was food, and in C.E.69 an emboldened Supreme Council decreed that a single PLANT from each city be turned over to food production. Thanks to their growing wealth of resources and technology, the PLANTs were able to institute some relatively radical policies. Civic Housing was instituted, ensuring that each citizen could be housed in reasonable conditions at no direct charge, while larger and better homes remained available on the open market. The Civic Stipend was also instituted, under which each citizen recieved a fixed monthly payment without condition. These policies were controversial due to the expense involved, but were found to work reasonably well under wartime conditions; in which the PLANT economy in effect became a closed system, and money flows could be easily controlled. The PLANTs continued to use the Earth Dollar during and after the war, largely because it was needed for foreign trade, and the last thing the overburdened PLANT government needed was the complexities of currency exchange. From the C.E.60s onwards, the PLANTs traded raw materials, manufacturers, and technology - covertly, and later openly - with their planetary allies and neutral states in return for currency and the few things they could not make for themselves in sufficient quantities; notably food. This currency was then issued to the population via public sector salaries, the Civic Stipend, and payments made to private companies and institutions under government contracts and subsidies. During the early years and the war, employment was not much of a problem in the PLANTs. Development provided many jobs, and the war economy ensured near-full employment. But Coordinator ingenuity, combined with the demands of the war economy, caused the economy to be increasingly automated. The resulting efficiency and productivity were vital to war production, and ensured high economic performance after the war, but at the cost of leaving large numbers of Coordinators unemployed and unemployable through no fault of their own. Between the Civic Income, falling birth rates, and a newed demand for art and culture, this problem was for the most part contained. Military The Armed Forces of PLANT are ZAFT; the Zodiac Alliance of Freedom Treaty. This organisation began its life as an armed resistance and terrorist group founded by Patrick Zala to protect the PLANTs and retaliate against any who would attack it; especially Blue Cosmos. This organisation became part of the Zodiac Alliance at its founding, but would over time develop into its militant wing; against the wishes of more pacific members such as Siegel Clyne. When the OMNI garrisons were withdrawn in C.E. 53, the ZA gained more freedom to expand and develop its capabilities, eventually becoming a formal military force in C.E. 67, and using its newly-acquired mobile suits to drive OMNI forces out of the PLANTs altogether. ZAFT’s organisational structure was formulated in the C.E. 60s, and formally adopted in C.E. 67. Like the PLANT political system, ZAFT was intended as a simple, easy to understand structure, without the rigid heirarchy and byzantine structure of OMNI and other military forces. In its early days, the ZA and ZAFT were organised into Teams named for their leaders, a practice which persisted as ZAFT became a formal military and developed a more sophisticated structure to accommodate its growing capabilities. The basic organisational unit of ZAFT is the Squadron, made up of between two and six warships; spacecraft in the case of the Space Forces, and landships or sea-going vessels in the case of the Ground Forces. A Squadron is commanded by a Squadron Commander, or simply a Commander. The commanders of individual vessels hold the rank of Captain. In one minor holdover from OMNI and older custom, the person in command of a vessel is always called the Captain, regardless of their previous rank. Squadrons are named for their commanders. Below the Squadron is the Team, a unit of two to six vehicles led by a Team Leader, for whom the Team is named. These vehicles include mobile suits, jet fighters, helicopter gunships, tanks, and similar. As a rule, ZAFT warships can carry a single team of six vehicles, these usually being mobile suits. Subdivisions within Teams are arranged informally by the Team members, with the oversight of the Team Leader. ZAFT’s structure is relatively simple, with personnel being divided into regular personnel and officers. Regulars generally wear green uniforms, and are referred to be their specialisation or function; Soldier Langer, Pilot Aiman, Technician Kent, etc. ZAFT’s distinctive red uniform is reserved for regulars who display particular ability and the good judgment needed to operate independently on the battlefield. This is part of an informal fast-track system, intended to raise such individuals to officer rank as quickly as possible. Officers generally wear black uniforms, and their duties involve higher levels of responsibility and competence than regular personnel. Commanders wear distinctive white uniforms with black and gold facings, while senior captains wear the same uniform without the gold. Both tend to be former redcoats, but this is not universal. Space Forces ZAFT’s space forces are built around its two warship designs; the Laurasia Class frigate and the Nazca Class destroyer. The Laurasia is the older, having been covertly designed as a freighter that could be converted into a warship quickly and easily while the newer Nazca was designed and constructed in secrecy. As such, when the Bloody Valentine War broke out in February of C.E. 70, ZAFT had fewer Nazcas available than they had intended, and were geneally forced to pair them with the less capable Laurasias. After the war, ZAFT played the Junius Seven Treaty to some extent by retiring the remained of its Laurasias and filling up their allocation with Nazcas, improving overall capability at the cost of numbers, and obeying the letter of the treaty if not its spirit. The carrier Gondwana was added shortly afterwards, and the Minerva would appear many years later. The Space Forces had their baptism of fire in the late C.E. 60s, usually in the form of raids by Laurasias - whether in freighter or frigate guise - against OMNI shipping and watch stations, as well as against Blue Cosmos assets, be they real or perceived. ZAFT‘s policy was to avoid harming innocent bystanders, but in practice many commanders attacked civilian shipping and colonies without distinction or restraint. Their official reasoning was to spread terror and convince the Spacenoid population that OMNI could not protect their interests, but as often as not the real motive was vengeful malice. This marked a Moderate vs Radical split within ZAFT that reflected the wider political situation. Stereotypical Moderates, such as Andrew Waltfeld, Athrun Zala, and Nicol Amalfi, at least attempted restraint, whlist Radicals such as Rau le Creuset eschewed restraint entirely. When the Bloody Valentine War finally took off in February of C.E. 70, ZAFT fleets had their first real battles. ZAFT tended to perform best in small-scale clashes, where its advanced technology and the abilities of its crews gave it the greatest advantage. In larger battles, such as Yggdrasil and Nova, ZAFT forces tended not to perform so well, as its officers lacked expertise in managing such large engagements, and its informal command structure was not well adapted for them either. In the following year, ZAFT tended to avoid such large clashed wherever possible. ZAFT space tactics generally involved deploying mobile suits from a distance, then engaging from a long distance before closing to mop up. Thanks to N-jammers and their own agility, the mobile suits could generally reach their ideal engagement range (within ten kilometres) with minimal losses. OMNI warships tended to rely heavily on electromagnetic sensors, and its defensive weapons relatively large and heavy; optimised for long-range engagements. If mobile suits could get in close, the turrets could not revolve fast enough to engage them; though this was regarded as challenging even for Coordinator pilots, and mobile suit losses tended to be high. Meanwhile, ZAFT warships could use their more advanced LIDAR and optical targeters - developed with the N-jammer in mind - to engage more effectively at long range - around one hundred to two hundred kilometres. If the mobile suits could distract OMNI gunners and destroy weapons and sensors while they were at it, so much the better. Ground Forces ZAFT’s ground forces were organised in much the same way as the space forces. In truth, the distinction between them was not half so formal as in OMNI, with personnel and equipment being deployed where necessary and appropriate. The ground forces, despite their name, included air, sea, and land forces in a combined structure. The sea forces were based around the Vosgulov class submarine, which could deploy mobile suits and provide fire support with cruise missiles. The land forces in turn were built around Lesseps and Petrie class landships. The Lesseps performed the function of a mobile suit carrier, while also acting as a mobile command centre, artillery battery, field hospital, and barracks in a single package. The scale system, which all ZAFT landships used, allowed it to handle all but the toughest terrain and even move on water. This made them useful for amphibious warfare, but ZAFT avoided using them for naval combat, as their seakeeping was not so good. ZAFT air forces consisted primarily of the Infestus fighter and the Agile helicopter gunship, generally deployed from static bases. Like their space counterparts, ZAFT ground forces tended to favour elegant, long-ranged battles, with emphasis on air strikes and artillery support. The real striking power of the land forces came from their BuCUE and ZuOOT mobile suits, backed up by the curious CAV armoured vehicles. The CAV was a controversial design at best; essentially a lifght AFV with a detachable rear turret, equipped with either a 76mm gun or an artillery railgun. In its artillery form it performed reasonably well, but was regarded as overcomplicated, while the rear connector made the vehicle vulnerable from the sides. The CAV is held up as an example of ZAFT designers letting their creativity get the better of them. Military Police ZAFT’s infantry arm, the military police function as both a police force for the PLANTs and as a security force for the military. In its latter function, it is generally deployed to provide security at ZAFT bases and facilities, and on occasion engaged in occupation duties. It rarely saw direct combat, as ZAFT could not afford the heavy losses that might easily result. The Military Police has long been the least glamorous branch of ZAFT, and regarded - not always fairly - as a dumping ground for inadequates and incompetents. It’s reputation was further damaged by Patrick Zala’s brief dictatorship, when it was tasked with arresting dissidents and suppressing the population it was sworn to protect. These attitudes, ironically, serve to fuel the pride of OMNI infantry forces, who take a certain satisfaction in every injury they inflict on the ZAFT forces who dismiss them as ‘mere infantry.’ Special Forces The only other formal branch of the military, and by far the most prestigious, the Special Forces are ZAFT’s elite. They are also the oldest branch, descended from the ‘retaliation squads’ deployed by the Zodiac Alliance to retaliate against Blue Cosmos and its sympathisers. They primarily appear as elite infantry much like their OMNI counterparts, trained and equipped for the most difficult and complicated missions. As a rule their skill set includes piloting mobile suits. Under Patrick Zala, the SF also functioned as a clique of capable and politically reliable soldiers, whom Zala felt he could rely on to carry out whatever missions he gave them. Unlike the rest of ZAFT, the Chair of the Supreme Council has the authority to command the Special Forces directly. History